The move to shut the three venues follows the recent closures of the Attica VIP, in Broadway.

But the leader of Peterborough City Council, Councillor Marco Cereste has denied the closures represent a crisis in the city’s night-time economy.

A spokeswoman for the Luminar Group said: “Unfortunately, due to challenging trading conditions and reduced footfall in Peterborough, we have taken the difficult decision to close Liquid.

“We will be working closely with our teams at this time and would like to thank both our employees and customers for their loyal support over the years.”

She added: “With the support of the police and local authorities, nightclubs should be seen as an important element of any town or city’s night time economy that not only create vital jobs, particularly for young people, but also help to stimulate footfall and revenue.”

Cllr Cereste said; “It is always a shame when a business closes.

“But it would seem that in this case there is not a lot of appetite among people in the city for this kind of thing.”

But he said the closures did not mean the city’s night time economy was in decline.

The council has invested about £12 million in revamping the city centre, which has helped attraction more eateries and coffee bars into the city.

He said: “There are a lot of other attractions that are open in the city and which are doing very well.

“For instance, the Argo Lounge, in Bridge Street, opened on Saturday and I’m told that 400 people attended.’’

Cllr Cereste added: “I think that times have changed.

“But with a new university planned for the city and more students living in the city centre it might be that there will be more demand for this type of attraction.”

News of the closure of the Luminar night spots has brought calls for action to get them reopened.

Resident April Cooper urged on the clubs’ Facebook page: “everyone like this page and share it please try bring these clubs back!”